End-locked sanitary napkin



' 1,629,390 y 1927- R. w. JOH NSON END LOCKED SANITARY NAPKIN Filed Dec. 29' 1925 a? m E i fosf/erl/da/ewso/ Patented May 17, 192?.

UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE. I

ROBERT W. JOHNSON, OF NEW BRUNSWICKQNEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR 'IO JOHNSON & JOHNSON, OF NEW BRUNSWICK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

END-LOCKED SANITARY NAPKIN.

Application filed December 29, 1925. Serial No. 28,187.

Principal objects of my invention are to simplify and, hence, reduce the cost of production of sanitary napkins of the self-contained or assembled absorbent pad and carrier type; and to provide an article of the nature indicated whereof the pad element is so supported as to be capable of manifesting maximum efiiciency with respect to its ca-, pacity to absorb and retain fluids, throughout its entire cross-sectional area, without liability of soiling the clothing.

Santiary napkins are generally supplied to the trade in envelope or tubular form, that is to say the pad is contained in a tubular wrapper of knit or woven fabric. The efiect of so confining the pad is to pinch and condense the side or longitudinal edges, which obviously reduces the capacity of the pad to absorb and safely retain fluid, so that there is danger of soiling the clothing and such danger is aggravated by the proximity of the walls of the tube.

I depart from that practice and so construct and assemble the parts, the pad element and its carrier, that the side edges of the pad are free and unconfined in consequence of which its cross-sectional area is uniform and is capable of uniform expansion.

In the accompanying drawing,-

Figure 1 is a top or plan view of a sanitary napkin embodying my invention: Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2. Fig. 3 is' a section on line 3-3. 5 Fig. 4 is a cross-section of the ordinary or tubular enclosure type of napkin.

According to my invention I provide a pad 5 of any material and arrangement qualified for the purpose. It is of general rec- Y 40 tangular form in plan as well as in crosssection. In order to insure substantial uniformity of cross-section and, hence, develop posal.

the maximum efficiency of the article as regards capacity to absorb and. retain fluid I so provide for the support and carriage of the pad that its longitudinal edges are free and unconfined. For this purpose I employ top and bottom bands or strips 6 and 7, the number and nature of which may vary, but

,by way of illustration 1 may say that single bands or strips of gauze or muslin have demonstrated satisfactory qualities. The merit of the described arrangement of opposed bands is that they do not lap the sides of the pad or exercise such restraint thereupon 5 as to locally condense the stock and, hence, preclude proper functioning of the same. 'lransversely then, strips 6 and 7 are the lateral dimension or substantially the lateral dimension of the pad. Longitudinally they 0 are, or one of them is, of such dimension as to provide means of attachment 8. And bands 6 and 7 are joined endwise of the pad by, for example, lines of stitching 9.

It is evident from the foregoing that I have provided a simple and inexpensive article possessed of the utmost eificiency in service in that the pad has flush points of contact with supporting bands which provide end locks only so that no restraint is imposed upon the pad such as is calculated to interfere with it freedom of expansion.

Having described my invention, I claim:

A single use sanitary napkin, comprising top and bottom gauze strips joined by .trans- 7 verse lines of stitching to provide a pad pocket open on two sides, the strips being continued to provide attaching means, and a pad adapted and arranged to be retained in said pocket without positive connection to the strips whereby it is capable of ready dis- In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

ROBERT W. JOHNSON. 

